Taking Down the Evil Underground
by Tai Sky
Summary: A street-smart raccoon makes it into the bigtime when he's thrown headfirst into a plot involving an evil mastermind behind one of Mobius' most notorious gangs ever!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One: Setting Out

The sun rose over the top of Mobius City. Flickies chirped as they awoke early to look for food. Mobius City, normally a very busy place, was actually pretty quiet until about nine a.m. However, there were a few people that had woken up even before the flickies, who arose at about 7 a.m. evey morning. A raccoon and a hedgehog were strolling down the street, side-by-side, chatting happily.

The raccoon, named Stripes, was about 17 years old. He had sparkling blue eyes, but unlike most raccoons, whose fur was black and gray, Stripes' was golden-brown. His tail was no exception, save for the black ring around it near the tip, nor were his ears, which were black-tipped. His belly and mouth were a creamish color. He wore whilte gloves, blue and red sneakers, and had a blue and red bandana wrapped around his head so that a blue and red strand of cloth flowing seperately behind him as he walked.

The hedgehog, named Manic, was entirely green except for his arms, mouth, and belly, which were that of a peach-like tint. He had a pair of black sunglasses propped up on his pointed ears, and had countless green spikes of hair jutting out at random angles on top of his head. He wore a red coat-like vest, white gloves, red and white sneakers, and had a brown sack hanging around his waist. Around his neck lay a silver necklace in the shape of a drum with a pair of drumsticks going through it.

"Whew, that was close, bro!" Manic said as they rounded a corner and entered a darkened alleyway. "Those goons nearly had us! I'm just glad they were so stupid they tripped over their own shoelaces!" He gave a small chuckle as he remembered the comedic event from earlier. "What had they been reading, 'Ways to Let a Theif Go for Dummies?' Haha!"

"It'd be nice if we could come across somebody who actually proposed a challenge for once," Stripes complained as they came upon a small grassy lot. "I mean, honestly! What's the point of robbing somebody if they're not going to put up a decent fight? Or a decent chase, for that matter!" Manic nodded as they came to a halt.

Stripes reached down and pulled a small, bronze ring from the ground. As he lifted it, a chain came with it, firmily fastened to the ground. Stripes grunted, but the the chain didn't snap or anything.

"I despise it when this thing rusts," Stripes said as Manic pulled on the ring with him. "One of these days we're going to need to get inside our hideout, and we won't be able to because the flipping door is jammed! Remind me to sue whoever gave us this faulty chain. This is the...what was it, fifteenth time this month we've run into this little snag?"

"I would hardly call it little," Manic groaned as the chain finally gave way, and a trapdoor sprung up. "And its the twenty-first time. I haven't fixed it yet because we have no more oil left. I used it all on the emergency escape van."

"Its okay," Stripes commented as he followed Manic down into the earth, pulling the trapdoor shut behind him with a loud 'thunk'. "I'll just have to 'pick up' some later. Let's just get some shuteye for the time being."

As Stripes and Manic descended the stairs, the lights dimmed, the air thinned. Their underground hideout was meant ot be a secret, protecting Stripes and Manic from those who would wish them ill fortune. The only people who knew its location other than the two friends were those whom they felt they could trust.

"Holy-!" Manic cried as he and Stripes reached the ground floor. "W-when did you get here? I don't remember inviting you! Stripes, did you-?"

"I had absolutely no part in this, I assure you," Stripes said, shaking his head. On the torn maroon sofa was a white, female bat with a bra shaped like a heart, skin-tight black leather pants, white gloves, and furry black wings. She was swinging a locket between her fingers while whistling a tune.

"About time you boys got here," Rouge said, getting to her feet. "I was starting to get lonely. Oh, by the way, you're out of chili dogs."

Stripes gritted his teeth. Chili dogs were one of his favorite snacks, and he didn't eat them very often. This only further contributed to his dislike of Rouge's sudden appearnce. She usually only appeared to them whenever she needed a place to hide out. She was the reason their hideout had almost been discovered last month.

"What kind of trouble do we need to bail you out of this time?" Manic said sarcastically. "Robbed a bank? Raided a gold mine? Double-crossed the military?"

"Those were one time deals!" Rouge protested, twilrling the locket faster. "Besides , my lockdown time is up, and I'm free as a bat! But no, this time I kinda sorta stole this necklace from some big time movie director. This trinket is supposed to be worth 200 Mobiums."

"200 Mobiums, huh?" Manic said with a smirk. Stripes could already tell his friend was formulating a plan in his mind. Whenever Manic got a good idea, his smile sent shivers down your spine.

"Okay, you seriously need to stop smiling like that," Rouge said, placing the golden trinket in her pants pocket. "You know how much that smirk creeps me out. Anyways, I just need to be here for about a week or two..."

"A week or two?!" Stripes cried. "Last time you said that, it turned into 3 months, and you all but brought the entire army upon our heads!"

"Nobody is ever going to find this god-forsaken shack-of-a-place you two theives call 'home'!"

"First don't say 'theives' like its a bad thing! How else are we supposed to survive and get our daily thrills?! And second, you're a theif yourself, so think before you open that big mouth of yours!"

A sharp knocking sound came from above, and the two friends stopped bickering. Manic, jolted out of his thoughts, went up to see who was at the trapdoor.

Manic answered the door and descended the stairs, still deep in thought.  
"Tania's here," he said without taking notice of the fact that Rouge and Tai were still going at it.  
A female wolf with a red shirt with white sleeves came down the stairs after Manik. She wore a green colored skirt and blue boots on both feet.  
"What's up guys?" Tania asked, her blue eyes sparkling. Tai instantly stopped fighting with Rouge and went to greet their new guest.  
"Give me a break!" Tania sighed, sighting Rouge. "What's BatGirl doing here? Isn't she like on parol or something?"  
"I have a name, y'know," Rouge replied bitterly, gnashing her teeth. She and Tania didn't always get along very well. "And for your information, my time's up..."  
"Then why are you here? Just got out of trouble and dove right into another fire, I see."  
"Talk about the pot calling the kettle black," Rouge snickered.  
"I've committed no crime, you oversized rat with wings!" Tania cried. "Honestly, I'm amazed these boys have the patience to put up with you! If it were me, you'd be on your own, sweety."

A loud slamming issued from above, startling everyone. It stopped for a few seconds, then continued, gaining more force with each slam. The underground base shook so badly, it was hard for the group inhabiting it to keep their balance.

"What in the name of Mobius-" Stripes started to ask before he fell to his feet. He struggled to get up, using the couch as a ground. "An earthquake? Mobius Town doesn't get earthquakes very often, and when we do..." more rumbling, then a quick silence before it continued again, "...it doesn't feel like a plow running over the ground! What's going on?"

Manic ran up to the door, gripping the railing firmly so as not to loose his footing. After a couple of minutes he rushed back down, completely out of breath.

"We need..." Manic wheezed, "...to get...outta here...right...now..." He pointed to the back door labeled "EMERGENCY" and Stripes grabbed his hand to help guide him. He didn't know what Manic had seen, but hatever it was had knocked a considerable amount of wind out of him. As everyone escaped out the back door, the room behind them collapsed. However, Stripes only barely noticed this. He was more concerned about the mark on Manic's belly.

"Dude!" Stripes cried. "What the heck happened to you?! It looks like someone tried to take a knife to you!" The wound was shallow, but it still drew blood, and the fact that Manic had to run soon after getting it accounted for his bad condition. After a minute of resting, though, Manic was back on his feet, his second wind restoring him.

"Some kind of robot was beating at the door," he explained. "It saw me, and shot some kind of laser at me. It grazed me, and I started falling down the stairs. Other than that, I don't-RUN!"

No sooner had the words left Manic's lips then the ceiling above them dematerialized. The friends fleww out of the small door behind them and out into a small lot surrounded by dingy houses. Then they ran, not daring to see what was chasing them, for they could here a series of metallic 'clangs' from behind them.

"What in blazes is going on?!" Tamiya demanded, trying her best to keep ahead of Rouge, who was flying as if in a race. "What the devil was that?! Rouge, if this is because of you, I swear I'll-" An explosion in front of everyone cut of her words, and they all came to a stop.

A robot, about a story high, was standing above the friends, its silver armor gleaming in the rising sun's light. It had a dome-shaped head, a cylindriacl body, four legs on wheels, and a laser pistol for each arm. Two red dots glowed from behind the dome.

"How on Mobius are we supposed to combat that?!" Rouge shrieked. Tamiya laughed while Stripes and Manic got ready for battle.

"If I didn't know any better," Tamiya mocked, her eyes intensifing, "I'd say you were new to this. Ready guys?"

"Ready!" Stripes and Manic replied cooly.

Then they flew at the massive metal monster.

End of Chapter One


	2. Chapter 2

(Mainic's drum medallion gives him the power to call forth a drum set with the power to shoot laser beams and manipulate the earth in case anybody gets confused while reading this).

Chapter Two: The Bigger They Are...

"You're nuts!" Rouge screamed as Tamiya ran at machine. Manic took something out of his pocket, threw it in the air, and smiled. The small square broadened, expanded, grew. In a matter of seconds a red board with yellow stripes running along the middle was there, hovering in mid-air.

"Pretty cool, huh?" Manic asked a s he and Stripes got onto the Air Board and took flight. "New and improved model. I had a friend advance it so that I wouldn't have to worry about misplacing it or carrying it under my arm all the time."

"Sweet!" Stripes said, his eyes gleaming. He was impressed. But the was tme for props later.

As Manic flew upwads, he realized something: His drum set wouldn't fit on his airboard! He had been so busy thinking of how to combat the robot, he hadn't thought of what to do once he had actually reached it! Stripes had a plan, though. Once they were close enough, Stripes signaled, and Manic flew in a curve, sending Stripes on top on the robot's domed head. Manic flew to the ground, re-pocketed his airboard (after shrinking it) and gently squeezed the silver medallion hanging around his neck. In a flash of green light, a state-of-the-art drum set lay before him. He grabbed two drumsticks from the pouch on his waist and began to play. With each hit, a green jet of light flew from the drums and struck the machine. The counterforce of the attack in the air with the downward pull of gravity intensified the damage, forcing the hulking giant ot its knees.

Stripes flew down at the monster robot, dodging streams of lasers as they erupted from the robot's 'arms'. A current of wind encased his right foot, and he flew strait into the middle of the domed head. An instant later, Stripes touched ground, having blown right throught the machine's center. Stripes ran out from under the robot as it sank into the ground.

Tania forcefully kicked and punched at the robot's underside, causing the 'legs' to break, and in turn the robot to collapse. However, the fight wasn't over just yet. The outer plating of the monstrosity cracked open, revealing the machine's inner workings. Sparkles of electricity played at the exposed wires, but the thing kept moving. The rouge wires attatched to the fallen wheels, and began vaporizing everything it fired at. Houses, trees, ground, everything was evaporating.

"Not good, not good, not good!" Manic cried as his drumset flew back into his medallion. He got on his airboard and just managed to fly out of the way as a blast blew apart the ground he had just been standing on.

Sparks struck the ground from the exposed wires, fizzling out as they touched the pavement. A small crowd had gathered to watch the specticle, most of whom were gasping in terror. Among them was a gray weasle-type person, wearing a purple jacket with two breast pockets. A light-brown hat covered his head, sheilding his face from passerby.

"Impressive," he muttered to himself as he turned on his heels and started to depart. "Undoubtly the fools will hold Eggman responsible. But seeing those kids in action...I'll have to upgrade my robots if I want to take them down...hehehe."

Stripes flew at the wires attatched to the wheels, but was forced to stop before he even came close. The electricity crackling there was tremendous. If it wasn't stopped soon, the people still lingering would be seriously hurt...

"Having difficulties?"

Stripes looked up in time to see Rouge throw some kind of silver javelin at the robotic monster. It struck the chest plate and sunk in. The metallic coating buckled, and a small explosion occuered where the object had hit. A shock of force went through the robot's body, then it collapsed and fell apart, crumpling to the ground.

Tania, Stripes, Manic, and Rouge all fled the scene, fearing that there was either more of the things around looking for them, or that they would be blamed for the damage caused. If more were after them, they could lead them away from the town. If they were blamed, well, theives weren't exactally at the top of a lawyer's 'Must Help List'.

After what seemed like hours of running, everybody stopped to catch their breath. By now they were far away from Mobius Town by several miles. They were at the edge of Turnbuckle Forest, a place said to be haunted by evil, departed souls.

"Well, what should we do now?" Tania asked as she stood up, clutching a stitch in her side." We can't go back their. Our home was destroyed."

"Yours was, mine wasn't," Rouge said mockingly.

"Its because of you that we can't go back!" Tania screeched. "You self-centered, egotistical, just plain rude bat thing, you!"

"For your information," Rouge retorted, placing her hands on her hips, "That thing didn't belong to the military! It didn't have their logo anywhere on it! It didn't have Eggmans's logo on it either, come to think of it."

"The Thief Underground..." Stripes whispered. Everybody present had to strain their ears to hear what their friend had murmured.

"Thief...Underground?" Rouge repeated. "Who are they?"

"They're a group of notorious thieves," Manic explained. "They've been plaguing Mobius Town for, like, five years now. The members were thrown from their jobs and homes because of low money availability. They banded together and formed an underground organization. They're the ones responsible for at least 78 percent of the town's misfortunes. I'm guessing they've pooled a good chunk of change to build that 'bot. But ya gotta wonder... what's their motive?" As he said this, Manic was tapping a beat on the stump of a nearby tree.

"Its simple," Stripes said, getting to his feet. "They want revenge against those who forclosed their homes."

"How do you even know all of this?" Tania asked, concern at the tip of her voice. "This information sounds dangerous to have been aquired.

"We're thieves," Manic and Stripes said together proudly. "Its our job!"

End of Chapter Two


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three: The Thief's Ring

After a moment of silence, Rouge decided to lighten the mood. Or try to, at least.

"Isn't their a rumor about these woods?" she asked, not even tring to cover the boredom in her voice. Tania was about to retort with some sarcasm when Stripes gave an answer.

"Its been rumored," he said, retelling a sinister tale, "That there was once a King of Thieves that had made a hideout in these woods. He was feared by the common people, but respected by theives far and wide. He wasn't known just for his talents or looks, though, but more so for the ring he always kept on his right hand. A golden band encrested with jewels the colors of the rainbow."

"Before he died," Stripes continued, "The King of Thieves had offered a challenge. He placed the ring on a podium in the center of his hideout. Any thief who managed to get ahold of it would be dubbed the next King of Thieves. The ring is priceless, and the stroy is as old as stealing itself. Many have tried to find the ring, but every last one has failed, ranting about 'the King's ghost.' Manic and I have been planning on coming here for some time, but we just never got around to it."

"Don't ask," Manic said with a sly grin that practically screamed 'We were off making mischief.' "Its a long story and I'm tired of telling it.

"I hate it when you smile like that," Rouge said and Tania laughed at the look in her eyes and the fear in her voice.

"Well, we're here," Manic said, his grin widening. "So we might as well go after the stuip thing."

"Stop grinning like that!" Rouge demanded, stamping her feet. "It creeps me out to no end! And there's no way on Mobius you're getting me to go in there! I have more important matters at hand! I'm gonna go back to town and-"

"Oh yes, please do!" Tania snickered. If looks could kill, the glare Rouge was giving Tania would have burned her fur off, and then some. "And while you're there, do tell the nice big robot thingy and the townspeople that you stole that watch, and that the robot only attacked us to get at it. It'll make a great short film! I can see it now! "Bat Steals Watch and Destroys Town! Extra News at Nine!" Tania laughed maniacally for a minute or two before she stopped, tears in her eyes.

"Can I hit her?" Rouge asked in a falsely sweet tone. "I'm begging you, let me take her down!"

"Let's just go!" Stripes said, leading the way. "Or would you prefer to sit here arguing 'til dawn and have the Necro-Bats come and eat you alive?"

Manic walked beside Stripes, Tania following close behind, a smile plastered on her face, showing off her white wolf fangs. Rouge brought up the rear, moaning about how she could have avoided getting into this situation.

As the friends ventured into Turnbuckle Forest, darkness wrapped around them like a thick blanket with small holes cut in for air. There was no dirt path anymore, years of avoidance had seen to that, so the group had no clue as to where they were or as to which direction they should take. To pass the time, everybody did something a little different. Stripes hummed tune, Manic tapped any rock or tree stump he could find with a pair of drumsticks, Tania was busy thinking of ways to scare the fur off of Rouge, while the female bat herself was flying through the air, keeping an eye out for signs of any possible treasure.

After about an hour of walking, Stripes came to a stop, and everybody halted as well. Manic kept playing 'Chopsticks' on a tree stump with his drumsticks out of lack of other songs he knew. He had already tapped them all out while walking, and it was obvious that this was annoying him because he was tapping out the song as slowly as possible.

"Something's not quite right here," Stripes said, lost in thought. "We've been here before, I'm sure of it." Years of life on the run with Manic had made Stripes accustomed to how to tell direction and time from wherever he was by judging the sky and air currents.

"How do you know?" Tania asked, slumping down on the stump Manic had finally stopped tapping. "Everything in this bloody forest looks the same! If we don't get out of here soon, I'm gonna have myself a bat BBQ."

Rouge would have liked to smack Tania silly if she hadn't been so tired from flying, so she suffised with a mumbled, "Screw you."

"Why," Tania remarked slyly, "When _I'm_ the screwdriver?" Rouge didn't even bother with a witty retort.

"I know," Stripes explained, "because the clouds are in the same position as they were about 20 minutes ago. Of course," he added, "It also helps that for everytime Manic taps a tree with those sticks, it leaves a series of indents on the tree. Think of them like breadcrumbs from 'Hanzel and Gretel'."

"Hanzel and _who_?" Manic asked. Apparently he hadn't heard the story, but Stripes was far to tired to answer the question.

"Guess we're taking a break," he said, punching a tree. A series of apples fell upon Rouge's head.

"That's no way to treat a lady!" she complained, wiping residue off of herself.

"Sorry, I didn't plan it that way. I was just seeing what would fall down, to be honest."

"I like the new look!" Tania joked. "You have too much white fur. Dye it red and we can pass you off as a female Knuckles!"

"Why I outta-"Rouge started when somebody shouted out in the distance.

"Did somebody call my name?!"

A tree suddenly fell down, crashing just before Manic's feet, causing him to jump up into Rouge;s outstretched arms.

"Sorry hun," she said as she flew down to the ground, dropping him about a half of the way there, "But I'm not your type." Manic landed safely, but looked at the person who had knocked down the tree in the first place. It was a red echidna, not much taller than Stripes or himself. Long quills of red hair almost completely covered his face, obscuring his purple eyes. His white gloves each had two points near the knuckles, which could increase damage in battle. A white 'V' type mark lay across the man's chest.

"Hey, it's Knuckles!" Rouge said in a sweet tone, being first to recognize him. She flew into his arms and practically tackled him over. She was about to lean over to his cheek when Tania grabbed the back of her outfit and dragged her off.

"Sorry," she said huffily, not sorry in the slightest, "But we have more pressing issues than dating right now."

"Why you-"

"What's everybody doing here?" Knuckles asked, brushing crushed tree bark off his fists. "I was doing some daily training. Gotta stay in shape, y'know"

"Yes, I do know!" Rouge said, making a break for the red echidna, only to be pulled back again by Tania.

"Try that one more time," she said in a no-nonsense tone, "And I'll tie you to a tree with those ears of yours."

After a bit of explaining, Knuckles nodded his head in agreement, closing his eyes in thought.

"So," he said after thinking tings over and opening his eyes once more. "You're after the Thief Ring? Well, I've got nothing better to do. Why don't I come with?"

"Sure, no prob," Manic said, and Stripes nodded in agreement.

"Can it!" Tania said, glaring at Rouge, who was about to open her mouth.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a blue flash rushed by everybody, kicking up leaves and dust as it flew by. Another instant later it came by again, then again, and again.

"Are we under attack?" Tania asked, putting up her dukes.

"I doubt it," Stripes said, sticking out a leg. The blue blur rushed over it, then crashed into the fallen tree. A blue hedgehog with red-and-white shoes with golden buckles lay on his butt, rubbing the back of his head.

"Ow!" he said, getting to his feet. "Now why'd you have to go and do that? Man, time-traveling is a little difficult...Huh?" The hedgehog looked up, his quills straightened. "Rouge, Knuckles, and Manic? What are you guys doing here? And who are you two?"

"You don't remember?" Stripes and Tania asked in confusion.

"I'm Stripes. We only met a couple of times, but still you should rememebr me, Sonic."

"Same here. I'm Tania, by the way, in case you forgot Sonic."

"I guess a lot's happened, and I just forgot," Sonic said, rubbing his chin.

After yet more tiresome explanations were exchanged, it was finally safe to say that everyone was up to speed. Especially Sonic now that he had finished straightening his quills.

"So," he said after brushing dust off of his person. "Where is this place, anyway? I giant mansion in the middle of the woods shouldn't be too hard to find, right?"

"Uh, Sonic..." Stripes bit his bottom lip a little before continuing. "I'm guessing that bump to your head head knocked your brain around a little. It's been exactly two years today that you've been gone. I had heard last year that you had beaten Eggman, and that he had returned here."

"Wait a second!" Sonic shouted, snapping his fingers. "I remember now! You two were the ones that helped me out against one of Eggman's bots! It's been awhile, so-"

"I think we can deal with that problamo later, bro," Manic butted in. "Right now we got a ring to find and a town to save. I don't know about you guys, but I've got this weird feeling...like somethin' bad's gonna happen, y'know?"

"Manic's right," Stripes said, finally getting the facts straight in his head. Time traveling realy wore down one's mind, and he felt sorry for Sonic. He didn't know why he was time traveling, or _how_ for that matter.

"I am?" Manic spoke up, a curious expression on his face. "I hadn't spoken for awhile, so I thought I'd say something."

"Only you," Knuckles muttered with a small smile, shaking his head with his hand on his forehead.

"You're so cute when you're conf-" Rouge started before Tania gave her the 'I'll-Kill-You-Without-A-Moment's-Hesitation-And-Not-Give-A-Crap' look. She gulped and folded her arms across her chest.

In the end, everybody decided to just go look for the place. They figured it would look old and worn down, with vines snaking around every inch and crevese of it. None of them had actually seen it in person before, they thought they might as well wing it.

End of Chapter Three


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four: The Castle Maze

"You have GOT to be kidding me," Tania gasped. After about two hours of running through thorn bushes, prickly vines, and fallen logs, the group had finally made it to their destination. At least, it appeared to be that way. They were standing in front of a 10-foot stone wall that had started to crumble from age and being unattended to. Dead vines curled along the wall, showing just how old the building really was. The only thing that wasn't there that they had pictured there would be was anything standing in the center of the place, or anywhere in it for that matter.

"You're sure this is the right place?" Rouge asked, perching atop a nearby tree branch. She wiped some sweat from her brow with a white golve and fanned her face with her hand. "Doesn't look like a castle to me. There's nothing inside but more walls in criss-crossing patterns."

"I never said it would be a castle," Stripes said as he attempted to climb a snarling vine, only to have it snap at the slightest bit of weight put upon it. "I believe I used the word 'structure'. And what do you mean 'criss-crossing'?"

"I mean 'criss-crossing' as in you lead us to a maze. A labryinth. A place with many paths, but no exits..."

"I know what a maze is, Rouge. I'm not ignorant to thses things y'know."

"Hun, you live on the streets. How in the world do you expect me to kn-" A sudden cloud of dust erupted from the side of the wall, pieces of the rock falling to the bare forest floor in pebbles.

"Do we really have time to be bickering?" Knuckles asked as he blew some smoke and dust from his Knuckles. He had a small smile about his face, impressed with his own strength. "I'm not taking the time to wonder around a flipping maze until next week. I'll just punch some holes in the wall, Sonic will zoom through, find the best path and voila! Problem solved!"

"Or I could just fly from above and give you all the best route to take," Rouge suggested.

"I don't trust you're directions as far as I can throw you," Tania replied with a yawn. "And I'm pretty sure I can throw you at least five feet, sweety."

"Why don't you guys have a contest?" Manik suggested. "That way, we'll see who gets the directions right, and faster at that."

"This won't turn out good," Sonic said with a smile as he shook his head.

Sonic, Stripes, Tania, and Manic slumped to the ground, trying to regain the energy they had lost while traveling. Besides, they knew how this would all play out. Knuckles would bash all of the walls in trying to get to the center of the maze, while Rouge would fly from above and try to beat him there. Then they would fight about who found it in the first place.

No sooner had these thoughts crossed everybody's minds then a crashing of stone was heard, and Knuckles quickly vanished in a newly formed hole in the wall. Another crashing sound echoed soon after, followed by more.

"I guess Knuckles is as impatient as I am," Sonic joked as Rouge flapped her leathery black wings, soaring over the maze and vanishing from site. "Either that, or he he has a thing against ancient structures."

Not much was said during the hour that Knuckles and Rouge where gone 'trying to find' the temple's center. Clouds of brown dust arose in the sky every so often, and stones thudding against earth could be heard in the distance. After another few minutes, however, all noise ceased completely, and the scene was deadly silent.

"I have a bad feeling, man," Manic said, raising to his feet. "Don't you think one of them would have found the stupid entrance by now? And even if they hadn't, it isn't like them to not say something after being gone for so long. Somethin's up, I can feel it..."

"I'll go have a look," Sonic suggested as he got to his feet and stretched. He was pretty tired, and sitting for so long had made his legs numb. He didn't have time to sleep, though, and what better way to catch up with his buddies than by doing what he did best? Stretching to the ground like a racer, Sonic took off, the backfire of wind ripping up fallen leaves and grass blades. Stripes could have sworn he saw smoke araising Sonic's takeoff point.

After a few moments of hesitant listening, a cry was heard. It was from Sonic, but the cry wasn't what was unnerving. What was creepy was the _words_ the cry had been spoken in.

"What in Mobius-?!"

Then Sonic's laughter filled the air, sending flickies flying from their nests. Wondering what could possibly be so funny, Stripes and the rest of the gang went into the labryinth. The followed large holes punched into the crumbling walls, leading in zig-zag like patterns. After a while of walking they eventually came across the cause of Rouge and Knuckles' absence.

"You have _got_ to be kidding me," Stripes laughed as he shook his head. Manic fell to the ground laughing, and Tania practically had to shove a fist in her mouth to keep from giggling too much.

Apparently Rouge and Knuckles had found the entryway, but it was blocked off by a net of entangled vines. Rouge had tried to break through it before Knuckles could even get to it, and in doing so had gotten herself ensnared in the weeds. Knuckles had tried to set her free, but he misjudged how much strength he needed and had broken so many vines that Rouge-along with the weeds-and crashed ontop of him, trapping them both.

"Do you have any idea," Tania blurted out as Sonic used his super sonic speed to free the tangled duo. "How ridiculous you both look?"

"I don't think jungle wear suits you two," Manic gasped, finally controlling himself enough to speak.

"How would you like to be sleeping in a bed of this stuff?" Knuckles growled as he stood up.

"This won't do for my complexion!" Rouge complained as she used her fingers to curl her hair down.

"What...is this place?" Manic asked, walking past the cut down vines. A small stone door covered with dust blocked any further passage. Curious, Manic took a gloved hand to the door and wiped some of the grim away. His eyes widened as he scanned the smooth surface of the stone.

"Guys?" he spoke, turning to his companions. "There's like, no handle here. How are we supposed to get in?"

Wondering what was going on, evertbody rushed to the spot at once. However, when they all stood before the door, something very unexpected happened: the ground gave way beneath them.

"AAAAAHHHHH!!" everyone cried out in suprise as they plumetted into darkness. Stripes, Sonic, Manic, Tania, and Knuckles all tried to grab onto something, but from what they felt the sides of the tunnel were slimy and had nothing to support them. Suddenly a hard surface rose up beneath them, and they all fell into a single crumpled heap.

"You guys look like you could use a hand," Rouge said sweetly as she landed safely on the ground a few feet away. "Or a pair of wings for each of you. Hahahaha!"

"Splendid idea," Tania growled as she sprung from the pile and hurled herself at Rouge. "How about I rip off yours and use them for some tissue?!"

At that moment the room was flooded with light, causing everybody to shield their eyes with their arms. When they had adjusted to the sudden brightness, they saw they were in a large, square room with a pillar in the middle, a single door on each of the walls. The light was coming from the pillar, which appeared to be made out of some sort of crystal.

"Oh, I get it!" Knuckles cried out. He walked up to the pillar and placed a gloved hand on it. Even through the white cloth he could tell it was cool to the touch. "The sunlight carries down the shaft we fell through, then hits the surface of this structure. The thing must be made of some sort of crystal, which catches the sunlight and reflects it throughout the room, making everything visible. Very clever..."

"Dude, what' are these scribbles?" Manic asked, walking up to the statue and pointing at it's center. "It looks like some kinda puzzle."

"Let me see," Stripes suggested, squeezing inbetween Manic and Knuckles. For a few minutes he just looked over the markings. Then his eyes lit up and he snapped his fingers.

"I've got it!" he cried. His voice echoed in the semi-empty room, making everybody jump a little. "It's a riddle. If we can solve it, then we cam probably find the Theif's Ring!"

"So what's it say, bro?" Manic asked.

Stripes repeated the following inscription:

_One light, four doors  
One leads to doom, the other to peril  
One to destruction, another to oblivion  
Make the one and four a five  
And see the treasure left for theives_

"Bro, I know that look," Manic said suddenly, looking at Stripes' face. "You always look like that when you're on the verge of solving a problem. You always seem to zone out, and you get so quiet."

"I know what it means," Stripes answered, trying to keep the worry out of his voice. "But if we go any further, we might very well lose our lives. The answer is written within the problem. But this particular equation means that we must work together. Or else..."

"Or else...what?"

"Or else...we all will perish within no later than fifteen seconds."

End of Chapter Four


	5. Chapter 5

Sorry for the long wait. I've been terribly busy. -;

Chapter Five: Cataclysum of Vengence

"What-what do you mean '15 seconds'?!" Rouge demanded, stamping her heart-tipped boots on the tiled floor. "Just what does this giant rock _really_ say?"

"I just told you!" Stripes yelled back. He was considerably worried now. They were all in terrible danger, and apparently only he knew how to get them out of this situation because nobody else was bothering to try and decipher the stone's meaning.

"I'll lay it out nice and simple for you," Stripes said after calming himself down. "Sorry I snapped, but I have a reason for it. Basically there is a certain way to get into the treasure room that holds the Theif's Ring. To get to it, we have to push in all these doors at the same time. That's why these ones have doorknobs, unlike the one were just trying to open."

"Its a trap. Those 'doorknobs' are really buttons. If one of them are pushed without the others joining it, the orb imbeded in this crystal statue will intesnify the sun's rays to a point where they'll shoot off in every direction, literally frying all that comes into contact with it! And no amount of sunscrene will save from this tan."

"There goes my want to get some sun after this was over," Rouge said simply, waving a hand in the air lazily. "I wasn't really sunburn concious until you went and told me this would happen."

"This isn't a joke!" Knuckles shot, nose flaring, fists clutched and shaking. "We're all in serious trouble here!"

"Can't we just push all the buttons at once?" Sonic asked, stepping inbetween the echidna and the bat. "I mean, you said we'd be fried if they were pressed one at a time, so why not all at once?"

"It's not that simple," Stripes replied, shifting his gaze to the dusty floor. "They all have to be pressed at the exact same moment. The Thief King was terribly paranoid about robbers before he passed, so he made sure eveything was accurate and precise before he passed. Sonic, what you said _is_ the answer, but if even one of us is shaking even the slightest when we press the buttons, then that will be enough to set off the crystal amplifier." Stripes pointed to a clear, almost translucent orb in the statue's center.

"Ready!"

Stripes looked up to see Manic, Tania, Sonic, and Knuckles each standing before a door, hand raised, finger extended. They had taken the positions while Stripes had been explaining the situation.

"Are you all mad?!" he cried out, jaw dropping. "Didn't you hear a word I just said?! We have to-"

"Relax, hun," Rouge commented, winking at Stripes. "What's the point of worrying? What have we got to loose? This is the only thing we can do, right? Besides, I can't fly us outta here. On the way down I glimpsed holes in the tunnel we all fell through. Its likely that they were traps that would spring the instant we tried to climb or fly up." Rouge placed her hands on her hips, her bat wings suddenly extending, as if she were stretching them.

"Besides," Sonic chuckled, causing everybody to look at him. "If this is the only way to continue onward, then why should we be nervous when we know just what to do? I mean, it's not like we can't think of a way to escape if the worst happens! You're forgetting just who you came here with, buddy!"

"Yeah!" Manic added with a bright smile. "We're here for ya, bro! If we gotta go down, then why not go down together?"

Stripes couldn't help but crack a grin. He nodded his head, and everybody else returned the nod with a friendly smile.

"Ready?" Stripes called out. "1...2...3...NOW!"

After the countdown, everybody pressed the doorknobs. As Stripes had predicted, they fell into a grove, revealing that they were buttons and not doorknobs at all. Each one clicked and for a moment or two nothing happened. Then the entire room began to shake violently. Cascades of dust and loose stones rained down from the ceiling, crumbling as they pelted the ground.

Suddenly, the ground began to split apart, serated edges revealing a dark pit as the floor began to slowly seperate into two pieces. The crystal pillar, however, remained in place, suspended by a stone pillar that shot to the bottom of the pit.

"We're all gonna die!" Rouge screeched as she jumped into Knuckles' arms. An instant later she realized what she had done and took back to the air.

"We never speak of that again."

"You'd better not," Knuckles growled.

"Why don't we all grab onto the pillar?!" Manic suggested as the floor quickly began to slide under the earthen walls. "We can all grab on, then maybe scale to the ground!"

"We wouldn't all fit on that tiny piece of slab!" Tania yelled. She tried to take a step back, but found their was nothing to step back onto. She lost her footing, and plunged into the black abyss.

"Hold on!" Rouge yelled. She dived after Tania, but at the same time Sonic had jumped into the air, having the idea he could run down the wall, catch Tania, then run back up. He colided into Rouge and they both fell. Knuckles, having no room left to stand, punched the bare wall as he began to fall. Using the points on his white gloves, he scaled down the wall safely, leaved small holes in the bedrock as he descended.

"I guess I'll go ahead and join them," Stripes said calmly. Using the wall as a ground, he launched himself from one wall to the opposite one, until he had arrived safely at the bottom of what wasn't a pit like he had anticipated, but more of a cavern. Tania, Rouge, and Sonic lay in a heap at the bottom.

"Good thing it wasn't a long fall," Knuckles grinned as he jumped a short distance down, having gotten pretty far in the amount of time he had been given.

"Where's Manic?" Stripes asked as he knelt down to untangle his friends from each other's limbs. "I didn't see him come down..."

"No need to worry, bro!" came a cheerful voice. Manic appeared out of the darkness, riding his red-and-white hoverboard. As he made it to solid ground the board shrank, and the green hedgehog placed it in his red coat pocket. "See? I told you guys we had nothing to worry about!"

"You could have told us you had a back-up plan!" Rouge complained as she finally stood up, stretching her battered black wings. "You nearly gave me a heart attack, thinking we were all gonna plummet to our deaths!"

"This from...someone who can fly," Tania mocked as she and Sonic straightened themselves out. Obviously the fall hadn't ruined her 'unique' sense of humor.

End of Chapter Five


	6. Chapter 6

*Sorry for taking so long. College and whatnot. ^^;*

Chapter Six~ Determined Memories

As everybody got untangled and stood up, they waited for their eyes to adjust to the semi-darkness they had fallen into. The walls were made of grey stone, and they were very damp. Moss grew on random spots throughtout the room and as far down the narrow passage before them as they could see.

"Perfect," Tania whined, heaving a sigh. "Just what we needed, more tunnels. M legs are killing me! And Rouge's big butt didn't help matters!"

"If you say one more word," Rouge growled, eye twitching. "I swear I'll take your quills and tie them in a knot. Let's see what kind of hair day you'll have then, sweety."

Sonic, Stripes, and Manic were about to say something when Knuckles got their attention and shook his head.

"You DON'T want to get involved in that," he said as he seperated the squabbling girls. "Woman issues. Best not to get involved."

"I don't know what amazes me more," Stripes replied as they all started trudging down the stone path laid out before them. "The fact that Knuckles actually did something by using his brain instead of his fists, or the bad mental image of Tania that Rouge just put into my head."

Everybody burst out laughing at that statement, even Knuckles. He knew it was true, and that's what made it so humorous. Although he didn't admit it.

After a few minutes walking down the passage, everybody realized that the source of light was no longer coming from above, but from right in front of them, somewhere in the distance. But what was strange was that it was flickering, as if the cause of the flare was moving.

"Hey, what's that?" Manic asked loudly, pointing at the flashing in front of them. "Could there be lightbulbs down here?"

Tania laughed and Rouge shook her head.

Suddenly, a giant flame flew at the party. It lit up the passageway, the flames licking the walls and sizzling as they hit the water lingering there.

The instant before the flames reached the friends a flash of bright green light blinded them all. There was a banging sound, and the earth seemed to tilt. When vision was restored, everybody realized what had happened. Manic had squeezed his necklace and produced his magical drumset. Without enough time to do anything else, he had slammed his sneakered foot onto a small petal jutting out from underneath his drum. This had caused a small stick to smash against the ground on the drum's front, making the ground shift upwards. The earthen barrier had blocked the flames.

Manic pressed his necklace again, and with another flash of green light the earth went back to normal and the drumset vanished.

"Dude!" he yelled out, pointing at a figure nearing them all. "What was that for, man?! You almost turned us into bar-b-que!"

"One must always be alert," the figure said as it came within sight. It was an echidna with dark blue fur. He had on red sunglasses that shielded dark green eyes. He had on large brown gloves along with a pitch-black jacket. His feet were adorned with brown boots with what appeared to be small engines in the stitching. He carried a lantern with a strange knob on it.

"No way," Stripes mumbled as he came to stand before the figure. "I haven't seen you for ages! I thought you were dead!"

"Who is this guy, bro?" Manic asked, a look of confusion plastered upon his face.

"This is Shades," Stripes replied without turning around. "He's...my older brother!"

"Your...older brother?" Knuckles asked bluntly. His face was contorted into something fierce. His eyes were wide, eyebrows raised. His mouth hung open to the left of his face, and his pupils were somewhat dialated. He looked like he'd just been hit upside the head with a baseball bat while explaining why the grass was green and the sky was blue.

"Okay, back up and rewind," he said after managing to get things sorted in his head. "He's an echidna, like me. You're a raccoon. Mind explaining what kind of parents you had? Or were you cross-breed genetic experiments?"

Manic dropped to the floor, grabbing his sides from laughing so hard. Rouge just shook her head while Tania shoved a fist in her mouth to stop the giggles coming from inside her throat. Sonic just smiled and walked over to Knuckles, resting an elbow on his shoulder.

"Something tells me that's not the answer," he sighed. He rapped Knuckles on the head lightly before continuing. "But you get points for effort, I can say that much.

"Ah, put a sock in it, Sonic."

Stripes was giggling at this point, but Shades just stood there, frown plastered onto his features as if he hadn't even realized Knuckles had said anything. After a moment he shrugged his shoulders and spoke.

"I don't feel the need to waste time explaining the details," he said in a low growl, lantern light reflecting light off of his crimson sunglasses. He put a gloved hand on his hip and sighed. "Point blank, Stripes and I met in an awkward situation, there was a fight, he followed me around like a lost puppy dog, and now I find myself living for the sole purpose of protecting him."

This speech was met with blank stares and open mouths. All laughter had completely stopped. Manic and Tania had pulled themselves up to their feet, opened their mouths to say something, then closed them.

"Shades is a bit low profile," Stripes explained with a sly grin. "He doesn't bother with big details, and he likes to have a reason for doing things. In effect, he likes keeping things short and sweet. He isn't one for showing his emotions, but he DOES have them."

"That makes you total opposites!" Knuckles pointed out, jabbing a finger from the raccoon, to the echidna, then back to the raccoon. "How do you to get along so well? It makes no sense!"

"Don't let your brain implode from thinking too much, sweety," Rouge mocked as she regained her voice. "Thinking so much must be stressful for you."

"Zip it!"

"I live to protect my little brother, that's all you need to know," Shades said bluntly, his voice practically void of emotion. "What's say we go find the ring, then we can explain things later."

"Dude!" Manic interjected as Shades made to turn around. "How did you know we were after-"

"Why else would you be in this Godforsaken death trap?"

Everybody present had to admit that Shades had a point.

"Are we going?" Shades grunted, continuing down the hallway. Shrugging there shoulders and shaking their heads to each other, Stripes, Manic, Sonic, Tania, Rouge, and Knuckles all followed suit.

After another deathly long trudge _through_ trudge, everybody reached a stern oaken door. This one obviously wasn't rigged due to the fact it had no knob and was already open a crack. The hinges were terribly rusty, and looked like they couldn't support the door's wreight for much longer.

Pushing past the door while ignoring the horrid screech it made when done so, Shades and the group pushed forward into the room. Rouge and Stripes had covered their ears when the door had creeked, their ears being more sensitive then everybody else's.

The room had a faint glow to it. Looking up, Tania pointed at the ceiling. The ceiling was cracked in many spots, and sunlight streamed through, filtering onto the ground. Water dripped from the cracks and onto her face. She brushed them off as Rouge supressed a giggle.

As weak as the light was, though, the room was still visible. Mounds of gold coins, royal treasure, and sparkling jewlery lay on either side, glistening from the dampness. A golden chair adorned with a fancy red seat cover lay at the far end of the room, obviously the throne.

"Something's...not quite right here," Stripes muttered as he took a step forward. "Why are their bones scattered about the floor?"

Knuckles gasped as he pointed to the floor. It was littered with grey-white skeleton pieces. He tried to say something, but decided to just grunt in disgust.

"Dude, I feel it, too," Manic sounded after a few moments of solitude. "It like...like there's a bone-chilling thing breathing down my neck. Reminds me of our trip to the bank last Christmas."

"We'll save that story for later Manic," Stripes replied as he felt the cold air, too. "I think I see something...HOLY CRAP!"

A white mass had appeared on the throne. It shifted, molded into something, and became dense. It gained features to define it, until everybody there could tell quite clearly what it was.

"No way..." Knuckles murmered. "I don't believe it..."

~End of Chapter Six


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven~The Ghost Theif

"It's...him..." Stripes whispered, hardly able to acknowledge the truth himself, even though it was maifesting itself right before his very eyes. The details, the laugh, everything fit the description of what he had heard and the little he had read. The Theif King was a wandering spirit, floating right in front of them.

He was pale skin-wise, which wasn't odd for an iguana. His beady yellow eyes flicked about, no eyelids to blink. His white coat was rimmed with red lace trimmings, and his feet were in bronze slippered with gleaming gems set in the leather. On his right ring finger was the Thief Ring.

"I trust you come for this?" he mused, showing off the rainbow band. "Perfect. It's been a good while since anybody dared came here. I think I'll tell you just what you've gotten yourselves into. Which one of you is the main theif among your group?"

Rouge instantly took hold of Stripes' shoulders and threw him at the deceased king.

"Sorry, hun. I have my whole future ahead of me."

"Why you little rat!" Tania bellowed. She was about to shove her fist down Rouge's throat when Stripes answered in an abnormally calm voice.

"Yes. I'm the saviest theif here. Why do you want to know?"

"The Thief Ring will only work if it is with one of true talent," the specter explained. "It won't work for just anybody. It is a magic ring that correspond's with a theive's soul. If you are worthy, it will be yours. As for the powers it holds, I cannot tell you."

"Cough it up, Your Royal Lameness!" Stripes demanded, oustretching a gloved hand. "We came a long way to get here, and we aren't leaving without that rock!"

"...just like me when I was younger....."

"I'm nothing like you!" Stripes yelled. "I know your history! Beating down and killing all who tried to get the ring, even if they were your servants! What kind of thief are you if haven't the honor to admit you've been outdone?!"

"What is he talking about?" Sonic asked.

"Theives have a code of honor we go by too, y'know," Manic answered, watching the debate with focused eyes. "If we've been beaten to our prize, it's customary to admit defeat and leave it be until the next time."

"I never knew..." Knuckles muttered.

"You have a bad habit of being cryptic!" Stripes yelled, launching himself at the ghost.

"Haha!" the ghost king cackled. "You cannot hurt me! I am a ghost, free to evade harm from..." That was when Stripes blew a punch onto his cheek and did a backflip.

"I'll ask you one more time!" Stripes yelled as the king stood up, a look of utter shock upon his features. "Give me the flippin' ring, or I'll kick your tail to next Tuesday!"

"You really are of great prowess'..." the ghost mummbled. "Wearing this ring, I am unable to be harmed except for theives of the upmost potential."

"That's aload off my back," Stripes smiled, readying himself for combat. "Because I've got loads of talent to spare. Now, it's time for you to know what it means to face a thewif with honor! En garde!"

"Aren't you gonna help?" Tania pleaded, tugging on Shades' arm. "Stripes might die in this fight! He's your younger brother, so do something!"

"...this is his fight, not mine," Shades responded cooly.

Tania, Sonic, Manic, Rouge, Knuckles, and Shades all backed up to a pile of treasure. They knew they shouldn't get involved, but it hurt to just stand there and watch Stripes fight off this...this thing.

"I wish I didn't have to dispose of you," the gecko said as he withdrew a schmiter from the pile of gold beside his throne. "It isn't very often I get to fight somebody with the potential to harm me."

"Save it," Stripes spat, charging his adversary. "You're already dead, so I don't have any regrets about handing your tail to you!"

"Did it occur to you that I cannot die?"

This made Stripes stop where he stood. He blinked, trying to make sense of the man's words. What was he getting at?

"I'll spell it out for you," the Thief King smiled. "You might be able to hurt me, but I cannot die. You can beat my spirit into ectoplasm, but I cannot die. Watch, I don't bleed!" The ghost took his blade and slit his bare arm. He laughed evily...until a pale liquid dropped from his arm.

"I-impossible!" he uttered, the white blood trickling down his arm. "I have been cut before, but never have I bled! Wh....no. It cannot be!" The Thief Ring was glowing, it's rainbow colored surface dazzling with a spectrum of brillant colors. Fo a brief second hte specter appeared to become alive, but in the sense as in you could tell what his scales were colored. But then he was semi-translucent once more, and the ring stopping shining.

"What...just happened?" the king bellowed. "I don't understand! The ring...it made me vunerable to harm!"

"That's good to hear," Stripes chuckled as he ran up and implanted the heel of his shoe in the dead theif's face. "I guess your time as it's owner has come to an end! You shamed the name of theives everywhere, and now you're paying for it!"

"Enough!" the villian screamed, taking hold of Stripes' foot and tossing him into the air. "I REFUSE to lose this ring to a pest like you! Die, you streetrat! Die knowing that I, Thief King Garamore, caused your demise!"

Garamore then went into a rage, the area around him pulsating with muderous intent. He flew at Stripes, sword raised to strike. However, Stripes had taken the time from being flung into the air to swerve so that he was facing his opponent. He dodged aside, grabbed the arm holding the weapon, and inserted his left knee into the man's stomach.

Unfortunately, Garamore wasn't known for quitting. Gritting his teeth, he tightened his grip on the scmitar and lashed at the racoon's arm. Barely able to avoid this next assult, Stripes relinquished his grasp on the ghost, but was cut shallowly on his arm. A few sprinkles of red blood oozed out as both boys reached ground level.

"That does it!" Sonic spoke, taking a step forwards. "There's no way I'm letting the kid get hurt! Stripes, I'm com-...huh?" Shades had placed a hand on Sonic's shoulder, stopping him from moving forward.

"Shades?" Sonic looked up at the dark blue echidna with a look of confusion before his green eye were flooded with frustration. "Don't stop me! Stripes could die in this fight!"

"I'm well aware of this," Shades answered coldly.

"You know?! Then why don't you do something?!"

"Because it is his fight, Sonic. Stripes is proving to himself that he has what it takes to not only be worthy of being called a master thief, but to prove he can protect you all when the situation is dire."

This caught Sonic of guard.

"You mean...he's doing this for us?"

"In a sense, yes. So just be patient. If you truely believe in him as a friend, you won't step in."

Sonic grunted, but stayed put, folding his arms against his chest. He hated waiting on the sidelines.


End file.
